1. Field of the Invention
The subject invention relates to surgical apparatus for performing laparoscopic and endoscopic surgical procedures, and more particularly to apparatus having an end portion which can be articulated in a patient's body during a surgical procedure.
2. Description of Related Art
In laparoscopic and endoscopic surgical procedures a small incision or puncture is made in the patient's body to provide access for a tube or a cannula device. Once extended into the patient's body, the cannula allows insertion of various surgical instruments such as scissors, dissectors or retractors to perform the surgery.
An example of an endoscopic surgical instrument is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 2,113,246 which issued to Wappler on Apr. 5, 1938. This patent discloses endoscopic forceps comprising an elongated conduit with jaws at the distal end thereof, a control rod in the conduit for controlling the operation of the jaws, and a control handle at the proximal end of the conduit which is operatively connected to the control rod. This surgical instrument is extremely limited in its application in that the angle of the conduit portion mounting the jaws cannot be adjusted in relation to the remaining portion of the conduit during a surgical procedure.
Improvements have been made in the art of surgical instruments to increase their range of operability. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,763,669 which issued to Jaeger on Aug. 16, 1988 discloses a microsurgery instrument with an adjustable angle of operation for obtaining cervical biopsies.
Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 4,880,015 which issued to Nierman on Nov. 14, 1989 discloses a surgical device having an increased range of operability. In particular, this patent shows a biopsy forceps designed for use through a flexible fiberoptic bronchoscope. The biopsy forceps includes a handle connected to a thin elongated flexible shaft with a distal portion thereof hinged to the shaft. A grasping tool or biopsy forceps is attached to the distal hinged portion. Control wires extend from the handle to the distal end to the shaft for controlling the angular rotation of the distal portion of the instrument.
Of the references discussed above, none of these instruments disclose a laparascopic instrument for insertion into a body cavity through a cannula and adapted for a wide range of laparascopic surgical applications. Further, the instruments disclosed therein are not provided with means for rotating the tool head about the longitudinal axis of the endoscopic portion of the instrument. Instead, a surgeon using either of these prior art instruments must physically rotate the entire instrument in order to change the rotational orientation of the distal end of the conduit or tube.
Accordingly, it is an object of the subject invention to provide an endoscopic surgical instrument having a tool head which is independently moveable about two axes of rotation relative to the handle while the instrument is in use.
It is another object of the subject invention to provide a lightweight endoscopic surgical instrument which can provide a clearer line of sight for a surgeon during a surgical procedure.
It is still another object of the subject invention to provide an endoscopic instrument in which a wide variety of different tool heads may be employed.
It is yet another object of the subject invention to provide an endoscopic instrument which may be used to perform electrocauterization during surgical procedures.
Another object of the subject invention is to provide an endoscopic instrument which is inexpensive to manufacture.
These and other objects of the subject invention will be made more apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.